L.A. Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing Boys in Thailand: DOJ

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A Los Angeles man was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Wednesday for sexually abusing boys in Thailand, authorities announced.

Paul Alan Shapiro, 71, received the sentence for two child exploitation offenses, including traveling in foreign commerce for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct and illicit sexual conduct in foreign places, according to the Department of Justice.

The retired car dealership employee—who lived in Montrose, according to a March 2016 statement from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement—pleaded guilty a day before his trial on July 24, 2017, the Justice Department said.

Terms of a plea agreement include serving 10 years in federal prison followed by 20 years of supervised release, as well as a total payment of $20,000 to two victims, both Thai citizens, according to the agency.

Plea documents showed Shapiro traveled from L.A. to Thailand several times over two decades and “engaged in sex acts” with boys under 16 years old, the Justice Department.

The agency added that in at least two instances in September 2012, Shapiro paid children as young as 13 “small amounts of local currency” to have sex with them.

The man took pictures of the acts, according to the department.

The case was part of an agency initiative started in 2006 to address child sexual exploitation and abuse, the Department of Justice said.